Family Fun

After surprising Moe-Joe & Dad-Oh with their big celebratory anniversary dinner... all the planning, worrying, and acting was out of the way, and we had the rest of the week to hangout, relax, and have some good ol' family fun!

And in doing so, Allen Jess got his very first taste of some delicious baby snacks... but from the looks of his face after trying one, maybe they weren't so delicious after all!

Speaking of snacks and babies... John Hampton decided he would outsmart his mother and lock himself inside of the pantry until he had his fill of his favorite snack!

Between spit-up, snot, drool, food, dried up snacks, and a dirty diaper... sometimes an emergency bath is required!

Of course a clean baby is a happy baby...

and everyone loves a happy baby!

Moe-Joe & Allen loved hanging out at the park together!

And while Allen Jess kept Moe-Joe company...

The other two little ones took off exploring on their own!

But even with beautiful weather, a nice park, a swimming pool, and a little baby to play with... we somehow managed to find time to stimulate our brains with electronic entertainment.

Watching Sammy navigate and play on Moe-Joe's iPad...

was nothing short of extraordinary!

The Boys weren't the only ones to get sucked into the world of computer generated entertainment! Mandi spent some time on the laptop in the shade... 

While Moe-Joe & Allen enjoy some playtime of their own.

Dad-Oh gets Allen all ready to go...

as we prepare to head out for a nice meal out in town.

 God bless the iPhone!!!

(Apparently crayons just don't cut it anymore!)

Allen is just about at that age...
where the "peek-a-boo" game is suddenly lots of fun!

Sweet Sammy takes some time out of playing to make sure his Cousin is happy & comfortable before the night's festivities begin!

As an early Easter gift, Moe-Joe gave the Boys a new Wii game... so that night we all gathered round in the living room and had ourselves a little dance off!

While Hampton & Sammy had youth on their side...

Moe-Joe & Dad-Oh certainly had experience on theirs!

Somebody clearly was losing this battle! 

Right arm & left leg up... or left arm & right leg up???

Amazingly, I don't think any alcohol was involved! Nevertheless, we all had a good time dancing the night away as Hampton made sure to capture it all on film... obviously to make fun of his parents in 20 years!

After Hampton, Sammy and Allen clearly won the dance competition that night, the three boys snuggled up with their Grandparents for their trophy shot!

One of the very few requests we got that week was that we all go out to lunch one afternoon at one of the local wineries. It turned out to be a great idea... for the weather was fantastic, the scenery was beautiful, and the food was delicious!

"Come on guys, I know the way... follow me!"

Hampton's camouflage pants definitely brought

just the right amount of class to the occasion!

Lunch outside on the patio of a winery...

with your family on a gorgeous sunny afternoon...

I'm not so sure it gets any better than that!

Traditionally, Spring Break isn't usually reserved for Etheridge / Hightower family get-togethers... but with a down economy and a new baby in the family, a "stay-cation" of sorts at the so-called 'Etheridge Resort' just seemed appropriate this year. With all the family in town enjoying the wonderful weather, celebrating, relaxing, playing and having a good time with each other, it turned out to be one of the best weeks of the year!